Your Engine Management Guide

Management Guide Caterpillar. The difference counts. ™

Your engine plays a major role in equipment operation. To keep productivity

up and owning and operating costs down, you need to understand the two types
of engine wear. Normal wear is expected and predictable. Abnormal wear may
be the result of improper maintenance or operating techniques, and it can
adversely affect your productivity and your operating costs.

The Engine Management Guide allows you to plan for and predict normal
wear and avoid abnormal wear. It will help you and your operators manage
your engine by:
• outlining preventive maintenance techniques.
• explaining the importance of S·O·SSM fluid analysis.
• providing routine and in-depth inspection information.
• exploring repair management options.
• detailing training, scheduling, and record-keeping procedures.

The Engine Management Guide will help you lower your costs by
highlighting how we work with you to manage and maintain your engine ®

effectively—for maximum productivity and life.

 Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................3
Manage and maintain your engine ..........................................................3
Lower your costs with a Customer Support Agreement ..........................3

Five Stages of Equipment Management .......................................................4

Make the right decisions at the right time for your operation ................4
Focus on stage four—Maintenance .........................................................4

Seven Elements of Engine Management ......................................................5

Include all seven elements in your management program ......................5

Preventive Maintenance.............................................................................6-8
Clean, cool, and lubricate engine parts with proper oil use ...................6
Control contamination with proper filter use ..........................................7
Reduce the chance of cooling system problems.......................................8

Engine Fuel Systems.....................................................................................9

S·O·S Fluid Analysis ...................................................................................10

Understand S·O·S fluid analysis ............................................................10

Inspections .............................................................................................11-13
Locate potential problems with thorough inspections ...........................10
Follow an inspection schedule...............................................................10
Recognize repair indicators..............................................................12-13

Repair Management...............................................................................14-17
Control costs and downtime with repair management options .............14
Maintain the three levels of Cat parts ...................................................15
Control repair expenses with engine electronics management..............16
Repair before failure to save time and money .......................................17

Training, Scheduling, and Record Keeping ..........................................18-19

Lower costs with effective training, scheduling,
and record keeping.................................................................................18
Scheduling and Record Keeping ............................................................19

Keys to Long Component Life ...................................................................20

Clean Lube Oil .......................................................................................20
Good Maintenance Practices .................................................................20
Avoid Abusive Operation........................................................................20

Manage and maintain
your engine
Caterpillar designs and manufactures
engines to deliver unmatched
performance and long life, which
ultimately increases engine
productivity and lowers your owning
and operating costs. Improper
maintenance and operating
techniques, however, can adversely
affect engine life, productivity,
and profits.
Introduction
Support Agreement. CSAs are
flexible agreements that enable you
to focus on and grow your business,
while we focus on maintaining
your equipment and providing
comprehensive service and support.
We’ll work with you to customize a
CSA that meets your specific needs.
Following are a few of the more
common CSA options.
• Preventive Maintenance Agreements
include on-site services performed
to factory specifications.
• Custom Hydraulic Service includes
contamination control, S·O·S fluid
analysis, and technical inspections.
• Total Maintenance and Repair
provides all maintenance and repair
for a guaranteed cost per hour for a
specified period of time.

The Engine Management Guide

will help you properly manage and
maintain your engine by highlighting
the five stages of equipment
management and outlining the
seven elements of effective engine
management: preventive
maintenance, S·O·S fluid analysis,
inspections, repair management,
training, scheduling, and record
keeping.

The Engine Management Guide

offers information, tips, and ideas you
can share with your staff. It is not a
technical manual or a substitute for
the advice and recommendations of
our parts and service experts. You can
find specific engine maintenance
requirements in service publication
SEBU6250.

Lower your costs with a

Customer Support Agreement
Another way we can help you
manage and maintain your engine—
or your entire fleet of Caterpillar®
equipment—is with a Customer

3
 Five Stages of Equipment Management
Make the right decisions at the right time for your operation
Even before you put your Cat®
machine and engine into operation,
you make important decisions that
affect your long-term profitability.
Using Caterpillar’s five-stage
equipment management system,
we can provide the consultations,
products, services, and computer
programs that help you make the
right choices at the right time for
your operation. This comprehensive
system helps you get more and better
performance from your equipment—
and keep your operation running at
maximum profitability.
Understand the five stages 4 Maintenance
1 Selection Proper maintenance is vital in
Choosing the right equipment achieving the lowest cost per
requires understanding the work hour.
5
to be done. We can help you find Replacement
the Cat machines and engines that
We can help you determine
meet your specific needs.
if your Cat machine or engine
2 Acquisition should be repaired or replaced.
We can help you decide if buying,
leasing, or renting is the right
choice for you.
3 Operation
The way you operate and manage
your equipment determines how
you achieve the highest
productivity.

Focus on stage four—Maintenance

Of the five stages, the fourth— Effects of maintenance on total life-cycle costs
maintenance—has the greatest
impact on your profits over time.
1% increase in results in
An effective maintenance program
lengthens machine life, keeps productivity 2.5% - 4.5%
equipment running productively, availability 1.7% - 3.5%
increased
operating cost 0.5% - 3.5%
increases resale value, and allows profitability
resale value 0.5% - 1.5%
you to schedule service and repair.
interest rate 0.7% - 1.2%
A comprehensive, consistent
price 0.5% - 0.9%
maintenance program can help
you maximize uptime and machine
availability—and in the process,
productivity
increase your bottom line. and can increase
A good maintenance availability profits by
program can affect operating cost more than 10%
resale value

Data acquired from the Equipment Investment Analysis Program

4
 Seven Elements of Engine Management
Include all seven elements in your management program
Preventive maintenance Preventive maintenance includes techniques that
help you keep small problems from becoming
major repairs. (Always refer to your operation
and maintenance manual for recommended
maintenance and intervals.)

S·O·S fluid analysis S·O·S fluid analysis is the best way for you to
monitor what is happening inside your engine.
It consists of tests that enable you to forecast
wear-related problems.

Inspections Inspections combine your daily walkaround

checks and our periodic technical analyses.
They allow you to detect potential problems
and impending failures, so you can schedule
maintenance and repairs.

Repair management Repair management helps you select before-

failure and after-failure repair options and control
repair costs. It allows you to plan and schedule
repairs, getting your machines back to work
quickly and reliably.

Training Our training assistance helps you improve the

maintenance practices of your staff. It reduces
the chance of failures caused by faulty
maintenance and helps you lower your owning
and operating costs.

Scheduling A good scheduling system ensures that

maintenance, inspections, and planned repairs
are done on time. It helps you prevent the
failures caused by overlooked maintenance.

Record keeping Record keeping consists of full documentation

on machine history, component life, and cost
information. It helps you identify high-cost or
problem areas, track work flow, control costs,
and increase machine resale value.

5

Clean, cool, and lubricate engine parts with proper oil use
Engine oil performs three main
functions: cleaning, cooling, and
lubricating engine parts.
• Engine oil cleans parts by carrying
away damaging metal particles
and deposits.
• Engine oil cools parts by absorbing
and carrying away heat.
• Engine oil lubricates parts by
forming a thin film to support
and separate them.
To ensure your engine oil correctly
performs these functions, it is
important to change the oil regularly
and properly and to select the right
engine oil.
Change oil regularly
When fluids are pushed beyond
recommended change periods,
contaminants develop, causing oil
to break down. These contaminants
embed themselves in bearing surfaces
and other moving parts to cause wear.
To avoid contamination, we
recommend that you change oil every
250 and/or 500 hours. (Check the
maintenance manual for specific
information about your machine.)
That is just a guideline, however,
because actual oil life is determined
by many factors—including operating
conditions. By monitoring S·O·S
results, we’ll help you determine
if the recommended interval is right
for your engine.
Proper intervals will also help you
optimize the lubricating and protecting
properties of oil and maximize
component life. Change oil too early,
and you waste money by throwing
Preventive Maintenance
away useful life. Change oil too
late, and you risk incurring even
greater costs through shortened
component life.
Change oil properly
It’s also important to change oil
properly. You can reduce the chance
of contamination during oil change by:
• draining when oil is warm and
agitated.
• draining dirty oil as completely
as possible.
• using a filtered transfer cart to
add new oil.
Select the right oil
High-quality engine oils provide
maximum protection and life for
today’s low-emission, high-
performance engines. Using an
inadequate oil means vital engine
parts aren’t protected, which can
result in unnecessary wear. To avoid
these problems, Caterpillar engine oil
has been developed and tested in
order to provide the full performance
and service life that has been
6
designed and built into Caterpillar
engines.
Using Caterpillar oil is the safest way
to ensure top engine performance.
We can help you determine the right
oil for your Cat engines, or you can
refer to service publication SEBU6250.
Engine wear and failure causes
Problems in the lube system can
cause accelerated abrasive wear or
catastrophic failure of core engine
components. The common causes
of engine wear and failure are:
• excessive soot in the oil.
• poor quality/low performance
engine oil.
• extended oil change intervals.
• poor maintenance practices.
• fuel dilution.
Regular preventive maintenance
is the most cost-effective way
to keep your engine operating
at peak performance.
Preventive maintenance:
• allows you to schedule downtime
and plan for maintenance and
repair costs.
• helps prevent major failures and
failures of related parts.
• saves you money because you
can often repair before failure.
• maximizes parts reusability.
• optimizes equipment life to keep
your machines on the job.
• increases machine resale value.
Control contamination with proper filter use
Air, oil, and fuel filters are designed
to control contamination inside your
engine. By changing filters regularly
and properly and by selecting the
right filters, you can maintain
engine cleanliness and reduce
component wear.
Change filters regularly
Air filters should be changed at
least once a year, although some
applications require more frequent
changes. The Air Filter Service
Indicator will help you determine the
most accurate period. This easy-to-
read indicator shows progressive air
restriction caused by dust and soot
build-up. By glancing at the indicator,
you can tell how much filter life is
used and how much remains.
Refer to the Operation and
Maintenance Manual (OMM) for
your machine or engine for the
recommended change interval.
Change filters properly
Old filters contain contaminants, so
it’s important to remove them carefully
at change time. Proper removal
ensures contaminants do not reenter
engine oil or fuel. You should also
keep new filters in their packaging
until you are ready to install them.
The packaging will help keep them
free of contaminants. It is also
important not to prefill fuel filters.
7
Select the right filters
Air filters—Inadequate filtration can
reduce horsepower, rob performance,
and ultimately damage your engine.
Most Cat air filters feature a radial
seal design that prevents dirt, soot,
sand, and other contaminants from
entering your engine. Plus, the quick
change element enables you to
change your filter and get your
machine back to work fast.
Cat Ultra High Efficiency Filters are
designed for environments filled with
fine dust, soot, or both and can last
two to four times longer than
standard filters in these conditions.
Oil filters—Quality oil filters work
in unison with fluids to provide the
highest levels of filtration cleanliness,
performance, and protection. Cat oil
filters are manufactured to meet the
most demanding specifications,
providing increased performance
and lower costs.
Fuel filters—Fuel filters prevent fuel
system wear caused by dirt in fuel.
Cat High Efficiency Fuel Filters
feature special media that trap even
very fine particles. They are essential
to maximizing fuel injector and fuel
pump life and prevent hard starting
caused by premature injector wear.

Reduce the chance of cooling system problems
The cooling system maintains correct
engine temperatures by taking away
unwanted heat generated by combustion
and friction. Over 40% of engine
failures are caused or aggravated by
cooling system problems, so properly
maintaining your cooling system
and selecting the right coolant can
significantly reduce the chance
of engine problems.
Maintain the cooling
system properly
Overheating and overcooling can
cause excessive wear and engine
failure, so it is important to recognize
and react quickly to indicators of each.
Signs that your engine may be
overheating include S·O·S fluid
analysis results that indicate high-
wear metals and oxidation or high
temperature gauge or label readings.
Signs that your engine may be
overcooling include a lack of heat
in the cab, S·O·S fluid analysis
results that indicate high-wear metals
and no oxidation, or low temperature
label readings.
Preventive Maintenance
Select the right coolant
Cat Extended Life Coolant helps
prevent overheating, overcooling, and
other cooling system problems and
lasts twice as long as traditional
coolant. It also eliminates the need
for supplemental coolant additives,
resulting in as much as a 45%
reduction in engine coolant
maintenance costs.
Cooling system wear
and failure causes
Problems in the cooling system
can cause accelerated erosion or
catastrophic damage to the core
engine components. The single most
common problem is poor coolant
quality, which causes accelerated
cavitation erosion of cylinder liners,
corrosion and failure of waste
pump seals.
Poor coolant quality is due to:
• Not maintaining adequate levels
of coolant additives.
• Using coolant that does not
meet Caterpillar’s minimum
recommendations.
• Not keeping the cooling system
topped off.
• Using coolant past its useful life.

To avoid overheating and overcooling,

always use proper start-up procedures
—never start operating until the
engine has reached the correct
temperature.

To avoid other cooling system

problems, remember to clean debris
from the radiator and fan, check the
radiator cap seal to ensure the rubber
seal is in good condition, and inspect
the water pump daily for dripping
coolant or oil.

8
 Engine Fuel Systems

The fuel system is the most
sophisticated, expensive and critical
of all engine systems. Engine
performance, economy and durability
depend on proper performance of the
fuel system. Keeping fuel clean and
using high quality, high efficiency
fuel filters will allow the fuel system
components to perform properly until
the engine reaches overhaul life.
• Abrasive particles are inherent in
most fuels. Some fuels have very
large amounts of abrasives
• Most abrasive contaminants
can be removed by using high
efficiency secondary fuel filters
and installing new filters before
plugging occurs
Other problems which can damage
unit injectors include:
• injector seizure due to excess water
in the fuel.
• injector sticking or seizure due to
fuel overheating.
• poor quality fuel.

Engine fuel system wear

and failure causes
Fuel system problems are largely
confined to accelerated abrasive wear
or seizure of unit injectors. Injector
seizure may also result in contingent
damage to valve train components.
The single largest problem is:
• Short unit injector life due to
excessive abrasive particles in
the fuel.
• Microscopic abrasive particles
damage surfaces in the injector,
causing internal leakage of high
pressure fuel and low engine
power

9
 S·O·S Fluid Analysis
Understand S·O·S fluid analysis
S·O·S analysis is the most
comprehensive oil monitoring
program available for your Cat engine.
By monitoring your engine and
forecasting wear-related problems, it
helps you avoid unnecessary repairs
and reduce downtime. Each S·O·S
fluid analysis test provides these
specific types of analysis.
• Oil condition analysis uses
infrared technology to compare
the lubricating properties of your
used oil to those of the same oil
when new. We use this technique
to ensure lubricating properties
remain optimal throughout the
oil change period.
• Wear metal analysis detects,
identifies, and quantifies the amount
and type of wear elements found
in oil.
• Physical tests detect the presence of
contamination by fluids like water,
fuel, and antifreeze. If undetected,
these contaminants can cause
rapid failure.

While other fluid analysis programs

focus only on oil condition, the
S·O·S program also focuses on
component condition. Since we
understand your Cat engine, we
can help you more accurately
interpret and react to the results.

10

Locate potential problems with thorough inspections
A good inspection program combines
your daily inspections with our periodic
in-depth analysis. These inspections
allow you to:
• locate potential problems before
they lead to major repairs.
• schedule engine maintenance
and repairs.
• plan and control your operating
costs and downtime.
Perform regular inspections
Your daily visual inspection routine
should include a complete visual and
operational check of your engine.
Cat engines generally indicate
problems with advanced warning
signs, such as excess smoke, loss of
power, hard starting, and overheating.
It is important that you and your
staff recognize and understand
these repair indicators.
Inspections
• The Technical Analysis Inspection Follow an inspection schedule
program (TA) is a proactive
evaluation of the health and • Service meter hours provide the
condition of all engine systems. best way to structure checks
The TA is made of two sub- and inspections. These scheduled
components, the TA1 and TA2. checks can help you identify
potential problems before they
■ TA1: Visual/Walk-Around become serious. Do not, however,
Inspection conducted by a PSSR substitute these checks for the
or Service Technician specific information located in the
■ TA2: Detailed Engine Inspection operation and maintenance manual
conducted by a dedicated inspector for each machine model.
or Service Technician
• Component Inspection/Repair is
a critical step when inspections
show the need to repair or replace
a component, such as a water pump,
starter, or turbocharger. We can
often remanufacture the component
to get your engine back to work
quickly at a low cost.

We can help you with these

inspections by:
• providing customized machine
checklists.
• training your operators to perform
daily walkaround inspections.
• teaching your operators to
recognize repair indicators
(see chart on pages 12-13).

Utilize our inspection services

We offer a number of diagnostic and
repair services to help you understand
engine warning signs and make
informed repair decisions.

11
 Inspections
Recognize repair indicators
Indicator Possible Causes Options

S·O·S Fluid Analysis results S·O·S Fluid Analysis is the single best indicator Customer/Dealer Discussion
of internal engine wear and potential failure.

S·O·S Coolant Analysis results S·O·S Coolant Analysis ensures that coolant is Customer/Dealer Discussion
protecting your engine from erosion and corrosion,
as well as providing freezing and boil protection.

Site Operations and Indicates estimated life to engine overhaul Customer/Dealer Discussion
Maintenance Advisor (SOMA) and how you can extend that time by changing
operating and maintenance factors.

Engine service meter hours Service meter hours are a good indicator of S·O·S Fluid Analysis
when certain repairs are needed. Customer/Dealer Discussion

Excess black smoke at full load Dirty primary/secondary air cleaner Technical Analysis Inspection
(hot, unburned fuel) Operating in too high a gear Customer/Dealer Discussion
Overfueling Faulty turbocharger
Overloading

Increased fuel consumption Malfunctioning fuel nozzles/injectors Technical Analysis Inspection

Malfunctioning turbocharger Customer/Dealer Discussion
Dirty air cleaner Tune-up
Improper set point
Fuel leak

Total fuel consumption The gallons of fuel consumed by an engine Customer/Dealer Discussion
can be an indicator of worn parts.

Blue smoke Worn turbocharger seals S·O·S Fluid Analysis

(oil consumption) Worn rings/liners Component Inspection/Repair
Worn valve guides Repair Determination Inspection
Hours on engine Customer/Dealer Discussion

White smoke Cracked head and/or liners Technical Analysis Inspection

(steam: water in combustion chamber) Leaking head gasket

White smoke Incorrect starting procedure Customer Dealer Discussion

(on start-up: unburned fuel) Incorrect fuel injection timing Tune-up
Faulty injector
Low quality fuel

12
Indicator Possible Causes Options

Increased oil consumption Worn or broken rings/liners S·O·S Fluid Analysis

(excess blow-by) Worn turbocharger seals Component Inspection/Repair
Worn valve guides Repair Determination Inspection
Hours on engine Technical Analysis Inspection
Customer/Dealer Discussion

Unusual noises Malfunctioning fuel nozzles/injectors Technical Analysis Inspection

Malfunctioning turbocharger Repair Determination Inspection
Worn piston pin bushings Component Inspection/Repair
Worn rod/main bearings Customer/Dealer Discussion
Too much valve lash Tune-up

Lack of power Incorrect adjustment of governor linkage Technical Analysis Inspection

Malfunctioning fuel nozzles/injectors Customer/Dealer Discussion
Slipping torque converter Tune-up
Improper set point
Dirty fuel filter
Dirty air cleaner
Low quality fuel

Overheating Malfunctioning temperature regulators Technical Analysis Inspection

Incorrect adjustment or worn belts/pulleys Customer/Dealer Discussion
Incorrect operator technique Cooling System Maintenance
Plugged radiator core (external and internal)
Low coolant level
Dirty air cleaner

Hard starting Malfunctioning fuel nozzles/injectors Customer/Dealer Discussion

(engine missing) Improper starting technique Tune-up
Worn fuel injector pump
Slipping torque converter
Low cranking speed
Low quality fuel (low cetane rating or water in fuel)

Oil level over full Coolant/fuel leak into crankcase S·O·S Fluid Analysis
Improper oil fill Customer/Dealer Discussion

Debris in oil filter Coolant/fuel leakage into crankcase S·O·S Fluid Analysis
Extended oil change period Customer/Dealer Discussion
Damaged bearings
Incorrect oil use
Dirty entry

13

Control costs and downtime with repair management options
Preventive maintenance, S·O·S fluid
analysis, and regular, thorough
inspections help you catch problems
in their earliest stages. With a good
engine management program that
includes these three steps, you can
make informed decisions about
repairs—optimizing repair timing
and minimizing repair costs.
Repair Management
require preventive repairs. user evaluates and rates the severity
of conditions at a particular customer
SOMA’s primary purpose is to
site (load factors). And second,
illustrate the importance of good
the user evaluates and rates the
maintenance and operating practices
maintenance and operating practices
for customers. Users accomplish this
that the equipment is subjected to.
by performing a gap analysis of the
customer’s capabilities, a process Contact our parts and service
which involves two steps: First, the professionals to schedule a

Repair management helps you

control repair costs and downtime
by giving you options at the time of
repair. To take advantage of repair
management, you must respond to
repair indicators quickly—so you
can repair before failure.

Respond to repair
indicators quickly
Cat engines are built to help you
avoid costly failure. Certain
components are designed to wear, and
your engine will indicate when they
need replacement. By responding
quickly to these repair indicators
(see chart on pages 12-13), you can
choose before-failure repair options
and replace worn components before
they cause major damage.

Site Operations and

Maintenance Advisor
Site Operations and Maintenance
Advisor (SOMA) is a computer
based application developed to help
Cat Dealers access their Customer’s
Site Operations and Maintenance
practices.

In addition to assessment, SOMA

performs component life analysis,
estimating how long machines can be
operated before major components

14
Maintain the three levels of Cat parts
Cat engine components are built
tough to provide maximum durability Level I parts
and extended life—and many are Piston rings
designed for multiple lives. Main and rod bearings
(Components fall into the three levels Valve guides
shown at the right.) Turbocharger cartridge
Following proper engine management These parts wear the fastest and are not
guidelines helps you get maximum designed to be reused—but in most cases,
life from all of your Cat engine parts. they’re also the least costly to replace.
By properly maintaining Level I
parts, you can help prevent more
severe and expensive damage to
Level II and Level III parts.
Level II parts
Pistons
Liners
Valves
Camshafts

These parts wear more slowly than

Level I parts and can be reused if
they’re properly maintained during
their “first life.” However, if Level I parts
fail, Level II parts may not be reusable.

Level III parts

Engine blocks
Cylinder heads
Crankshafts
Connecting rods

These parts are designed

to last your engine’s entire
life. They’re also the most
expensive parts to replace.
However, if you follow
proper maintenance and
repair practices, you should
never have to replace Level III parts.

15

Control repair expenses with engine electronics management
Engine electronics offer performance,
power, serviceability, fuel economy,
emissions control, and durability not
possible with most mechanically
controlled engines. They also help
you control engine repair expenses.
Electronic Control Module (ECM)
Caterpillar’s Electronic Control
Module (ECM) and sensors control
and monitor key engine functions,
including:
• fuel temperature.
• engine oil temperature.
• oil pressure.
• atmospheric pressure.
• coolant temperature.
• injection actuation pressure.
Repair Management
Sensors relay messages about these
engine functions to the ECM, which
analyzes the data and adjusts engine
operation to optimize power and
economy. The results are increased
fuel savings and productivity.
Electronic Technician (ET)
Engine electronics also help prevent
expensive failures by alerting your
operators to abnormal operating
conditions. We can use the Electronic
Technician (ET) to read engine “faults,”
enabling you to repair before failure
and helping you get your machine up
and running as quickly as possible.
Managing your engine involves
troubleshooting potential problems.
To troubleshoot electronic problems,
it is important to:
16
• eliminate all other potential
problems first (more often than not,
performance problems are caused
by something other than computer
system electronics).
• begin with a preliminary inspection
for signs of obvious trouble, such
as part damage, loose connections,
and broken wires.
• use the Electronic Technician to
study conditions before failure.
• look at diagnostic codes, which
direct attention to service
requirement areas for ease of
maintenance and repair.
We offer a variety of services and
expertise to help you get the most
from your engine and its electronics.
Repair before failure to save time and money
Before-failure repairs can get your
engine back to work sooner and cost
as little as one-fifth the price of after-
failure repairs. In addition, repairing
before failure:
• reduces damage or failure of
related parts.
• allows you to schedule repairs at
your convenience, minimizing
downtime and work disruption.
• minimizes part replacement, because
we can analyze individual components
to determine reusable value.

Summary of wear and

failure causes
Actual defects in the quality of core
engine parts and components are
seldom the root cause of accelerated
wear or premature failure. The vast
majority of problems are caused by:
• Poor Quality Oil
■ Inexpensive new oil with
inadequate oil additives
• Other contributors to accelerated After-failure repair options
■ New oil that does not meet the wear and failure include:
minimum required performance Repairing before failure is the best
standards ■ Dirt ingestion way to reduce your downtime and
■ Extended oil change intervals ■ Poor filter element maintenance costs. If your engine does fail,
which exceed the usable life however, we can help you control
■ Excessive valve lash
of the oil costs and save time. We use Cat Parts
■ Lack of engine tune-ups Reusability Guidelines and replace
■ Oil contaminated with dirt or
failure debris
■ Engine overheat only damaged components to keep
■ Engine overspeed replacement costs down. We can also
■ Poor quality oil filters rework parts or install Cat Exchange
■ Poor quality fuel parts—Reman components that carry
■ Poor quality fuel filter the same warranty as new Cat parts
but cost much less.
All of these causes are directly related
to operation and maintenance practices
and are avoidable. Proper engine
operation and high quality maintenance
can virtually eliminate most causes of
accelerated wear and failure.

17
 Training, Scheduling, and Record Keeping
Lower costs with effective training, scheduling, and record keeping
Training, scheduling, and record
keeping may be the most important
elements of engine management
because of their impact on other
elements.

We offer a variety of training,

scheduling, and record-keeping tools
that will help you manage your
engine and lower your costs.

Train your staff

An effective, ongoing training program
ensures that your staff operates and
maintains your engine properly.
It will help you lower owning and
operating costs by reducing the
chance of engine failure caused by
faulty maintenance practices.

We work with you to customize a

training program for your operation by:
• making sure your operators know
proper start-up and shut-down
procedures.
• reviewing maintenance procedures
to ensure your operators follow
recommended lube and maintenance
guidelines.
• teaching your operators how
to recognize and react to repair
indicators.
• demonstrating the correct method
for taking S·O·S samples
(oil and coolant).
• explaining proper oil, filter, and
coolant change procedures.
• outlining daily walkaround
inspections.

18
Scheduling and Record Keeping
Scheduling
Good scheduling means maintenance,
inspections and planned repairs are
done on time to prevent drive train
failures caused by overlooked
maintenance. You can also view
S·O·S Oil Analysis results on-line
by using Dealer StoreFront.

Record-keeping
By developing and accurate engine
record-keeping system, you can
identify high-cost or problem areas,
track work flow, control costs
and increase engine resale value.
An accurate record-keeping system
documents drive train history by
detailing component life and cost
information. We can help you set up
manual record-keeping and work
order systems, or we can help you
install computer software programs
to perform scheduling, checklists
and other record-keeping functions.

19
 Keys to Long Component Life
Clean lube oil Good maintenance practices Avoid abusive operation
The use of poor quality/low Thorough inspection and problem Operating practices that cause engine
performance oil, maintenance correction during PM service is overheating, overcooling or
intervals which exceed the usable the best way to prevent emerging overspeed inevitably result in
life of the oil, and excessive soot problems from causing damage. catastrophic damage or failure.
levels dramatically shorten engine Correct problems identified by S·O·S
life. Where it’s use is permitted, the or VIMS reports before they become
Oil Renewal System can keep soot failures. Insure repairs are performed
within acceptable levels and extend correctly and in a quality manner.
oil change intervals to as much as Perform regular inspections, tune-ups
4,000 hours. and adjustments.

Caterpillar. The difference counts.™

For more information, see us today.
Cat Dealers define world-class product
support. We offer you the right parts
and service solutions, when and where
you need them.

The Cat Dealer network of highly

trained experts keeps your equipment
up and running to maximize your
equipment investments.

PEDP7028-02 www.cat.com Printed in the U.S.A. © 2006 Caterpillar

CAT, CATERPILLAR, their respective logos and “Caterpillar Yellow,” as well as corporate and product identity used herein, are trademarks of Caterpillar and may not be used without permission.